Camera carriage



' March 16, 1937. v, RABY 2,073,998

CAMERA CARRIAGE Filed April 6, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR mil? ATTORNEYS March 16, 1937. v. R. RABY CAMERA CARRIAGE Filed April 6, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet 2' INVENTOR. t W

ATTORNEYS March 16, 1937. v. R. RABY CAMERA CARRIAGE Filed April 6, 1936 3 Sheets-Sheet I5 MINVENTOR \N v .3 3 nw N 3 s v N HQ. NU S Q vs I/ YVVMQ 4 ATTORNEYS Patented Mar. 16, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CAIVIERA CARRIAGE Victor B. Raby, hos Angeles, Calif., alssignor to Studio Equipment 00., a partnership composed of Victor R. Baby and William J. Mulligan, Los

Angeles, Calif.

Application April 6, 1936, Serial No. 73,048

4 Claims. (01. 248-124) This invention relates to a camera carriage In the subsequent description, reference will which is particularly adapted for use in supbe had to the appended drawings, in which:

porting, guiding and positioning motion picture Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the entire carcameras during photography. In motion picture riage. photography it is highly desirable that the cam- Fig. 2 is a plan view, partly broken away and 5 era readily assume various positions with repartly in section, of the turntable means car- ,spect to the subject being photographed. In ried by the main bed frame of the device.

order to produce the required pictorial or dra- Fig- 3 is a vert cal ction through a Portion matic effect, it is often necessary that the camera of the turntable and boom of the carriage.

be positioned either at some point close to the Fi 4 is a enlarged Vertical S ct o t en 10 ground or can photograph the scene or subject along the p n IV V of Fig.

from a considerable elevation. At other times Fig. 5 is a section taken along the plane V-V it is desirable that the entire camera pivot or of Fig. 4. move so as to follow the subject. 1 Fig. 6 is a plan view of the braking means pro- The present invention is directed toward a vided on the turntable. 15

portable camera carriage which is extremely Fig. 7 is an enlarged vertical section alo compact and very flexible in operation, permitthe plane VII-VII of Fig. 6. ting photography to be carried out me ready Fig. 8 is an enlarged vertical section taken and facile manner without limiting the director along t plane VIII-VIII of or photographer. 4 In the illustrative form .of apparatus town in 20 Generally stated, the invention relates to a, the drawings the device includes a bed frame camera carriage which is movable in its entirety, generically indicated at Sileh frame being D such carriage being provided with a turntable vided with suitablewheels to permit ready moveon which a boom is mounted, Compensating ment of the entire apparatus. For example,

5 spring means are carried by the boom, tending to wheels 2 may b Ca y e ear en of he 5 raise the outer end thereof, thereby permitting bed frame I. The forward end of the bed frame manualadjustment of the boom with but little may be p v d d with a is d portion 3 whi h effort. The boom is also provided with a pivoted is p d With CaStOIS The handle member head which constitutes a camera support and 5 may e a a d t a v rt p 6. the l wer an operators or cameraman's seat. Both the end f uch pin being Suitably connected t the 30 camera support and the seat are automatically fron Casters S0 88 to permit the ers t0- adjustable sothat they maintain a substantially fellow t e handle d euid nely di ect the movehorizontal position irrespective of boom position. meht 0f the device- An object of the invention, therefore, is t The bed frame I carries a turntable generally disclose and provide an improved camera carindicated at 'l. The turntable itself is shown 35 flage in greater detail in Figs. 2 and 3. As there Another object is to disclose and provide shown, the turntable includes the member 8 movable camera carriage provided with means which is rotatably mounted upon a stud 9 Pass whereby the camera may be raised or lowered mg through the fixed or Stationary bottom ber I 0 carried by the bed frame I. The outer 40 Sfwung abou-t m various directions edges of the turntable 8 are provided with a pluurther ob ect is to disclose and prov1de a M f n hem s aced toner H m h camera carriage provided with spring compen- 1 y o pe p y p e s w c ride along a circular track l2. A strip of felt sat ng means whereby the major portion of the may be carried by the upper edge of the track welght earned by the is aummatmany at or near the outer edge of the turntable 8 so overcomeas to make a dust-tight fit between such tum- A still further the inventmn is table and the stationary runway or channel l2. close an provide it m ia e which a A circular member I8 is firmly attached to be readily moved and adjusted wi h he exthe stationary plate member III. A spur gear penditure of but little effort. I4 is carried by the stationary member l8 and 5Q These and other objects, uses, advantages and may be attached to the member l3. A pinion adaptations of the invention will become apparl5 mounted upon the end of a shaft I6 is in cut to those skilled in the art from the following engagement with the spur gear I l. The shaft detailed description of one illustrative embodi- I6 is held in a suitable support or bearing I1 5 meat of the invention. 7 carried by the turntable a and such shaft l6 5 may be tubular and provided with a telescoping extension I8 provided with a keyway adapted to slidably receive a. key l9 held in the tubular portion l6. The upper end of the shaft |8 may be provided with a hand wheel 28. It will be apparent that rotation of the hand wheel 28 will cause rotation of the pinion |5 which, by reason of its engagement with the spur gear l4, will cause the turntable 8 to be rotated.

Within the circular member |3 a pair of semi-circular brake shoes, indicated at 2| and 22, may be positioned by means of pins or screws 23 extending through tangentially directed slots formed in the brake members. The two brake members 2| and 22 incompletely form a circle and are normally held together and out of contact with the interior surface of the member |3 by means of springs 24 and 25. When it is desired to lock the turntable in position, however, a braking knob 26 is rotated, said braking knob being threaded upon the end of a bolt 21 provided with a conical head 28, such conical head fitting within a countersunk conical depression formed in adjacent or opposing ends of the brake members 2| and 22.

The outer end of the bolt 21 is provided.

with a stop 29 so that rotation of the brake knob 26 causes the bolt 21 to move upwardly' into the conical depression, forcing the two brake members 2| and 22 apart into frictional contact with the interior surface of the member I3, thereby effectively preventing further rotation of the turntable with respect to the member |3 or the stationary portion I8 of the bed frame.

Mounted upon the turntable 8 are pillars 38 and 3|. These pillars carry a pivot pin 32 on which a boom, generally indicated at 33, is pivotally mounted. The boom is preferably hollow and a coiled spiral spring or springs 34 are positioned within the hollow boom and around the pivot pin 32, one end of the spring 34 being firmly attached to the pivot pin 32 whereas the other end bears against a suitable stop or portion of the boom as, for example, the bolt 35, thus tending to raise the free end of the boom. The weight or strength of the springs 34 should be such as to counterbalance the boom as much as possible.

The boom 33 is also provided with a segment of a spiral gear as shown at 36, this segment or sector being carried upon a suitable webbing firmly attached to the pivot end of the boom. Mounted upon the turntable 8 is a worm 31, suitable thrust bearings being employed, said worm 31 being in engagement with the spiral sector 36. Although various means for driving the worm 31 may be employed, those shown in the drawings comprise a V pulley 38 mounted upon the worm shaft and another pulley 39 mounted upon the end of a tubular shaft 48 journaled in a bearing 4|. A belt 42 connects the two pulleys 38 and 39. The bearing 4| may be provided with a web 43 extending between angles 44 and 45 attached to the side of pillar 3|. The web 43 may be provided with elongated slots through which-pass tightening screws 46. .By these means the shaft 48 may be positioned closer or farther away from the pulley 38, thereby facilitating tightening of the belt 42. The hollow shaft 48 may be provided with a telescoping shaft extension 41 on which the handle 48 is mounted. Suitable tightening means 48 permit the shaft 41 to be adJustably positioned within the tubular shaft 48. Rotation of the shaft 48 by means of the handle 48 will obviously drive the worm 31, causing the boom 33 to raise or lower. Very little effort is required to raise and lower the boom in view of the compensating effect of the springs 34.

Preferably the boom 33 is provided with a camera support which is pivotally connected to the boom at its outer end. Such camera support is indicated at 58 and may include a leveling head 5| and leveling screws 52. The camera support 58 may have downwardly extending ears 53 and an integral yoke member 54. The entire assembly is pivoted on a pin 55 journaled in the boom. In order to maintain the camera support 50 in a virtually horizontal plane irrespective of the position of the boom 33, the yoke 54 is pivotally connected by means of a link 56 with one of the pillars, such as the pillar 38. The link 36 may be adjustable in length as by means of the coupling 51 so that a desired inclination can be given to the camera support by lengthening or shortening the link 56.

The boom 33 is also provided with a seat which similarly pivots about a substantially horizontal pin 68. The pin 68 may be provided with a casting 6| having a vertical passageway therethrough, a tubular member 62 being slidably received in such passageway. The tube 62 may be provided with a plurality of diametrically extending apertures 63 adapted to receive a pin 64 which. rests upon the top of the member 6|. The upper end of the member 62 is provided with a casting 65 to which there is hinged a seat holder 66, the hinge being indicated at 61. The casting 65 is provided with an extension 68 extending in a direction opposed to that of the hinge 61 whereupon the member 66 may rest upon the extension 68.

The seat itself, indicated at. 69, may be adjustably positioned along the member 66 by means of a strap and set screw 18. The pin 68 and the casting 6| are firmly attached to one another, the end of the pin 68 being provided with a lever arm 1| which is then connected by means of a link 12 with the pillar 3|. As the boom is raised or lowered, the seat 69 will be maintained in a substantially horizontal plane. The seat holder 66 may be pivoted (together with the tubular member 62) within the casting 6|.

When a protracted number of pictures are to be made from one position, it may be desirable to prevent the entire carriage from moving. The entire carriage, including the bed frame I, may be leveled off and rendered immovable by means of four jack screws, indicated at 88, 8|, 82 and 83, which may be lowered so as to take up the weight of the entire carriage, relieving the weight from the wheels and casters.

It will be seen, therefore, that provision has been made for a movable camera carriage capable of supporting the heavy soundproofed motion picture cameras now generally employed in motion picture photography. The boom may be swung in a complete circle if desired and may be raised or lowered at will. The heavy weight carried by the end of the boom is compensated for by means of springs so that very little efiort need be exerted to move the boom.

Means are also provided whereby the camera support carried by the end of the boom may be adjustably positioned and automatically maintained at the same angle (or in a sub stantially horizontal plane) during any elevation or depression of the boom.

Attention is also called to the fact that the compensating springs are in the form of flat spirals and are enclosed within the boom or an enlargement thereof so that in the event of failure of a spring, the possibility of injury to I persons in the immediate vicinity or to the camsprings may be also varied. All changes and modifications coming within the scope of the appended claims are embraced thereby.

I claim:

1. In a camera carriage, the combination of: a movable bed frame, a turntable carried by the bed frame, a boom pivotally carried on said turntable, means carried by the turntable for selectively raising and lowering said boom, spring means movable with said turntable and operably connected to said boom tending to raise the outer end thereof, a camera support pivotally carried by the outer end of the boom, and means connecting; said camera support and turntable adapted to maintain said camera support substantially horizontal duringmovement of the boom.

2. In a camera carriage, the combination of i and in engagement with said spur gear and means for rotating said pinion, a boom pivotally carried on said turntable, means for selectively raising and lowering said boom, and spring means operably connected to said boorm tending to raise the outer end thereof.

3. In a camera carriage, the combination of: a movable bed frame, a turntable carried by the bed frame, means for 'regulatably turning said turntable, pillars provided with a pivot pin carried by said turntable, a boom pivotally mounted on said pin, a spiral gear sector carried by saidboom, a worm gear rotatably mounted on said turntable and in engagement with said sector gear, means for driving said worm carried by the turntable, spiral spring means attached to the fixed pivot pin and to said boom tending to raise the outer end thereof, a housing for said spring means carried by said boom, a pivoted camera support carried by the outer end of the boom, a seat carried by said boom, a separate link' means attached to said camera support and seat and to said pillars, said separate link means being adapted to-maintain said camera support and seat substantially horizontal during movement of the boom.

4. In a camera carriage, the combination of: a movable bed frame, a turntable carried by the bed frame, means carried by the turntable for regulatably turning said turntable, supports on said turntable, a hollow boom pivotally mounted on said supports, spring means carried by said turntable tending to raise the outer end of the boom and enclosed by said hollow boom, a camera support pivotally carried by the outer end of the boom, and adjustable link means connecting said camera support and supports carried by said turntable and adapted to maintain said camera support substantially horizontal during movement of the boom. VICTOR R. RABY. 

